I attended a terrific workshop the other day, and I came home with a whole lot of thoughts. I’m not a workshop kind of person. I’m kind of an anti-meeting person altogether, so this was somewhat of an anomaly for me. I’ve always written on my own, albeit aided by invaluable words of wisdom from other authors on the internet and in books. I’m a bit of a hermit, and I’m also an insanely busy hermit. The idea of sitting stationary for a few hours, listening to other people talk, doesn’t always entice me. But I really wanted to meet these authors, since they’re all from my area. Plus, they’re all members of the RWA, and I’m not, so I wanted to get a feel for what I might be missing. I'm so glad I went.What struck me the most was how different a lot of the perspectives were … and how different some were from mine. I had a couple of beefs, but I’m keeping those to myself, because really, everything in writing is subjective (except for grammar and spelling). Nothing I write is any more valid than something anyone else might write.But I woke up this morning with a niggling thought—you know those? That little voice that won’t shut up long enough for you to convince it that you’re too busy to write a blog? Anyway, mine was insistent, and I did think it interesting, so today’s blog is about SEX.

Writing sex, anyway.One of the questions put to the panel yesterday was by an author uncomfortable about writing graphic sex and/or violence. I can’t recall all the responses, but I got the general feel that the author should just do it, dare herself, be free! And yet … I’ve written a lot, and I still am uncomfortable writing either. In this day and age, where we’re relatively dulled to violence and hard to shock when it comes to sex, do we have to juice it up? Write such rip roaring scenes that you’ll get past the rest? In my opinion, no.I’ve written relatively sexy stuff (which I haven’t even considered publishing), and that includes a couple of wedding nights. And oh boy, I’ve written violence. My most controversial scene of “Under the Same Sky” was one of the first things I ever wrote, and it shocked me to the core. I had no idea I had that in me! I wrote absolutely everything my character saw, everything she heard, everything she felt. Through my words, the reader knew every little thing that was going on. Then I remembered that readers had brains and imaginations of their own. I cut, cut, cut, and in the end I came up with something a couple of people have called “Fade to Black” violence. I created the setting, built the tension, put up signposts and fences so the reader couldn’t avoid the scene, but I let the writing suffice. Did I have to indicate every kick, every punch, every thrust? Did I have to repeat the abusive language those creatures used? No. Absolutely not.

When I’m reading, two things will prompt me to set a book aside, unfinished. Predictability and Redundancy. Do I know just about everything about the characters and story within the first few pages? Yes? Not interested. Do I need to learn the details of how to tie a knot? The material on the chairs in a room? The weather? Unless these things are directly related to the storyline or are a central focus of the scene, I could care less. Touch on them, but let’s not dwell, people. I get bored.

The same goes—for me—with writing sex. I figure we all know how sex works, right? Insert Tab A into Slot B, create friction … Why do I have to include thrusting or sweating or groping or panting? And don’t get me going on descriptions of how she’s feeling during her orgasm. I can build to what’s going on through other actions, but once my characters are into it, they’re on their own.

On the other hand, I’m not going to just shut the door on what’s going on. Take this example from “Sound of the Heart.” It was actually pretty graphic for me.

He wanted her to love this, to feel the exhilaration he felt. He wanted her to want more. He certainly did not intend for this to be their one and only time. He tried varying his speed depending on the little purring noises she issued, then realised he couldn't stand thinking anymore. He closed his eyes as a familiar, delicious rumble began deep within him, taking ahold and growing, wave after wave, taking possession of his mind and body.

Not one thrust, not one unnecessary grab, though I’m sure there were plenty in his mind. I could have gone into the down and dirty descriptions, but in my heart, that was enough. I didn’t look away, but I didn’t take away from Dougal’s moment by over-narrating, either.

I think there are three distinct schools of thought on writing sex and violence. The first would be the hands-off, the author who wants nothing to do with writing more than a peck on the cheek. The second is the full frontal, go-for-it, no holds barred (or add in holds just for the thrill of it, if you’re into erotica). But the third is one that people often forget, and that’s Fade To Black.

What I want to say to readers is ... if you’re looking for more graphic stuff from me, it isn’t forthcoming. I am in my characters’ heads already. They deserve a little privacy now and then.

What I want to say to writers is ... if you are uncomfortable about writing sex or violence but it’s necessary for the story/scene, consider writing Fade To Black.

And to be honest, up until Penguin US sent back my first edited book draft—completely covered in tiny little commas—I had no idea the Oxford comma was such a big deal.

Turns out it is ... and it isn't.

Because of that lesson learned, I am now a huge Oxford comma freak, gleefully adding them wherever the situation calls for them. But the truth is, as you'll see in this HANDY DANDY INFOGRAPHIC (thank you, Online Schools), they're really only a big deal in the U.S. And only in some circumstances. Check the map at the bottom of the picture.

I'm going to keep gleefully adding them, though. I like the way they clarify situations.

I would be happy to share with you the info about this, but, well, I already did! Yay! Here's the blog I wrote back in 2011 (trust me, nothing's changed). And *drum roll* here's the fabulous infographic. I wanted to just attach it here (so I did), but I couldn't make it any bigger, so here's another link to a larger version.

* I cannot believe what a nerd I am. The idea of an Oxford Comma infographic is just so exciting to me.

You know me. The first thing I’m going to say about presenting your book to the public is to make sure it’s something they will want to read. That means you must make sure you hire an editor before you put it out there. Now on to the subject of this blog. Appearance matters. What you see when you open a book makes a direct impact on your perceived enjoyment of the book. For example, if you open to the first page and discover it is made up of one long, long, long paragraph, well … I don’t know about you, but in most cases I close the book without even bothering to read, feeling suddenly exhausted. The opposite is true as well. A page offering nothing but short points of dialogue or exclamation, like little bullets, seems flighty, unengaging. So it is important the writer consider the appearance of the page, not just the words on it. Consider these points: Sentence Length Vary the lengths of your sentences. While short bursts can be used effectively to make a point, they can also feel like you’re stuck in traffic. Hit the accelerator, then slam on the brakes. Too much stop-and-go traffic is annoying whether you’re in a vehicle or reading on your sofa. Longer descriptions are sometimes necessary; however, be careful of droning on ad nauseum. A good mix of sentence length helps the flow of the work. TOO SHORT She walked in. He glared with contempt. The tension burned between them. TOO LONG She stepped with caution into the darkened room, uncaring of the sound of her feet on the old floor. The wood-paneled walls provided no cushion for the fury she felt upon witnessing his unrelenting glare, directed like lasers in her direction, unwilling to look away. The burning tension between them, strung like a violin string across the silence of the room, twisted the air in the room into a place hot with fury, and though breathing was somewhat difficult in that kind of atmosphere, it was obvious neither of the two would consider taking the submissive step of moving away, giving way to the other. A MIXTURE OF LENGTHS When she stepped through the door, he was there, glaring with contempt. The air burned with tension.

Paragraph Length

A paragraph should contain subject matter which is related to itself. Don’t change direction mid-paragraph. Use a variety of sentence lengths to make up the paragraph, then make sure your paragraph lengths vary as well.

TOO SHORT

“Did you see him?” she asked.

“No, but I didn’t look.”

“Why?”

“Just didn’t.”

“But—”

“Leave it.”

She glanced away.

He kept staring.

TOO LONG

It was she who took the first step, it was always she who bent the invisible line between them, curving it with her soft, cold voice. “Did you see him?” He chewed furiously on his lower lip, a sign that a decision was being made in the back of his mind. It would take a minute for it to move forward, she knew, for it to reach his lips, then meet the air. When it finally did, he matched her tone. “No, but I didn’t look.”

Confusion washed over her. “Why?” she demanded. Wasn’t this what they’d talked about? Dreamed about? Wasn’t this the answer they’d agreed upon? And yet there he stood, consumed with his own egotistical righteousness, determined to be the one in charge, determined to play Alpha to her Beta. Enough was enough. When he replied, “Just didn’t,” she grabbed hold, determined to make him explain. “But—” And yet her questions, as always, were cut short, terminated before they had the opportunity to make any sense. That was his intent, of course. “Leave it.”

Frustrated beyond belief, she folded her arms and glanced away, always conscious of his stare.

A MIXTURE OF LENGTHS

It was she who took the first step, always she who bent the invisible line between them, curving it with her soft, cold voice. “Did you see him?”

He chewed furiously on his lower lip, a sign that a decision was being made in the back of his mind. It would take a minute for it to move forward, she knew, for it to reach his lips, then meet the air. When it finally did, he matched her tone.

“No, but I didn’t look.”

Confusion washed over her. “Why?” she demanded. Wasn’t this what they’d talked about? Dreamed about? Wasn’t this the answer they’d agreed upon? And yet there he stood, consumed with his own egotistical righteousness, determined to be the one in charge, determined to play Alpha to her Beta. Enough was enough.

When he replied, “Just didn’t,” she grabbed hold, determined to make him explain.

“But—”

And yet her questions, as always, were cut short, terminated before they had the opportunity to make any sense. That was his intent, of course.

“Leave it.”

Frustrated beyond belief, she folded her arms and glanced away, always conscious of his stare.

Dialogue

That reminds me to remind you to separate pieces of dialogue. Don’t make a habit of sticking conversation pieces together. If he says something, separate it from what she says. If he makes a gesture, separate it from the comment she’s about to make. I illustrated that in the above example.

Not every piece of dialogue needs to have a tag, but I discourage writing more than four consecutive lines without at least interrupting or colouring it with something: a gesture, a sound, a smell … something. And when you start up again, make sure you make it clear who is speaking.

I've been temporarily swallowed up by the marketing machine while I promote the separate releases of my two novels, "Under the Same Sky", and "Sound of the Heart". Both are doing really well, garnering wonderful reviews, and I hope you'll pick up a copy of each of you haven't yet done so.

This has nothing to do with my Editing Services. It's just a shameless plug to encourage everyone to buy my books. I'll get back to this blog soon, I promise.

In the meantime, I received this email from "Daily Writing Tips" and wanted to share it with you - some terrific websites we should all keep in mind as we struggle with this dream that is writing.

Every weekday morning I get the kids up and dressed, ensure they've brushed their teeth, make their breakfasts and lunches, tuck them into hats and mitts (on days like today), give them a kiss, and wish them luck at school. No one knows what that day at school will bring.

Every time I finish editing a book, I make sure every word, every phrase is complete and polished, check to ensure the story flows so readers will be hooked, dot every "i", cross every "t", give the manuscript a (symbolic) kiss, and wish them luck. No one knows how that book will do when it finally appears in public.

But it takes a brave soul to put it out there. And it takes both a brave and a smart soul who shows they care enough about the final result to hire an editor before just going ahead and pressing "Publish". Self-publishing is easy. Anyone can do it. It's easy to type, easy to blather on about whatever, easy to press "Publish" on any one of the self-publishing sites. But once that book is out there, it's out there. And if anyone reads that book, they'll remember if the author was good, bad, or indifferent.

We don't want that. We want everyone to remember our book as being the BEST. We want them to wring their hands, dying to get their hands on the next one.

I'd never send my kids to school half-dressed or unfed. I'd never allow a kid to head out into public with bad manners or lack of respect for those around them.

I'd never publish a book which hadn't been professionally edited and obviously treated with love. I respect readers and book buyers. Books take time and money to read. I wouldn't waste their time.

Don't waste your talent. If you've written a good book, let an editor make it the best it can be. Doesn't have to be me. There are a lot of excellent editors out there. Get referrals, read testimonials, check out the edited books. This is a major commitment and deserves just as much time and deliberation as you spent writing the book.

You owe it to your book. You owe it to yourself. You owe it to the publishing world in general —too many nasty, unedited books are out there, making readers question the quality of all writing.

It has long been my policy to Underpromise and Overdeliver … and it appears I have done entirely the opposite this time. There's no way I'll be able to squeeze in all the editing tips I'd been hoping to share - not in detail, anyway. I have a whole heap of excuses, but who needs to hear all that? So please forgive me, and I will do my darndest to get back to that policy in 2012!

Okay. Here we go with the final 7 tips:

Tip #6:Get rid of words you don't need.

These lists a few of the top "most used and unnecessary" words and phrases. Do a Search for them when you're done your manuscript and cut or alter when you can. Too many words make your reader yawn. Sometimes the words can just be deleted, sometimes the whole sentence needs to be rearranged. And sometimes the words are perfect and you should just let them be. Read these sentences aloud, first of all using the unnecessary word, then trying it without. Smoother?

That … "She told me that it would be possible"

There was … "She told me there was no way it could be done." (makes it a passive sentence) "She told me it couldn't be done." (active)

Just … "I just wanted to do it."

Really … "I was really glad she'd said that." or use a better word: "I was thrilled she'd said that."

Was … "The problem was being discussed by management." (passive) "Management discussed the problem." (active, and usually preferred)

Quite … "Everything about the problem was quite difficult."

Very … "Everything about the problem was very difficult."

Tip #7Acknowledge your characters' traits.

He's not just "John". He's a man. What kind of man?

He's a somewhat stooped, tall man whose shirt is constantly ironed but gives the impression it fought him all the way. He has a voice that makes you want to clear your throat when he's speaking, if only to help him clear that "ahem" trapped in there. His dull brown eyes are either downcast or looking away, suggesting disappointment in himself, lack of self-confidence. Though he shaves every day, he always misses that little patch under his right ear. He takes short steps and watches the ground as he walks.

Tip #8Don't combine "And" with "Then".

Choose one or the other.

"She buttoned up her coat, and then reached for an umbrella."

"She buttoned up her coat and reached for an umbrella." (this is weak because it suggests she's doing it simultaneously. Notice the comma disappears because the second phrase is dependent.)

"She buttoned up her coat then reached for an umbrella." You can see her doing it now, can't you?

Tip #9Avoid Lists

"She opened her tiny suitcase and stared fearfully at the pile of clothes she'd have to squeeze in. She'd have to make room for ten shirts, four pairs of pants, socks, underwear, a skirt for the party, three different kinds of shoes, her mousse and hair products, make-up, and a winter coat."

"She opened her tiny suitcase and stared fearfully at the pile of clothes she'd have to squeeze in. Besides the mandatory socks and underwear, she'd have to make room for ten shirts and four pairs of pants. Those were obvious. She'd need a skirt for the party, and that meant she'd have to fit in not only her two regular pairs of shoes, but a fancy pair as well. With resignation, she puffed through her lips, sounding somewhat like a horse. She'd have to make herself presentable, so she'd need all her hair products as well as make-up. And crowning it all, she'd have to stuff in her big, fat, down winter jacket. How was she going to manage all that?"

Tip #10:Avoid "I feel" or "he felt".

That's way too easy, and way too boring. Instead of "He felt the night descending"

put him right out there and experience it with him. "His skin prickled as darkness shadowed the woods; the lack of sunshine sent shivers of uneasiness tickling down his spine."

Tip #11Explore all the senses.

It doesn't all have to be in one sentence, because that can be overwhelming, but you can try. This first example is a clean but dull example. The second takes in all—or most of—the senses, brings your reader into that room with your character.

"The worn grey planks creaked as Jenny's bare feetshuffled across the floor, and she shivered at the chilling evidence that it was mid-January. She should have taken the time to search out her cracked old moccasins, hidden somewhere in the dust beneath her bed. From under the kitchen door seeped an almost sickly sweet aroma of vanilla, and she realized Clara had remembered her birthday. The clanging of pots and Clara's muttered curses confirmed it."

Tip #12 Enjoy what you're doing

If you're writing for the money, you've chosen the wrong career path.

The dream of writing, of expressing oneself through words, comes from something much deeper than your wallet. Write to open your spirit and let your imaginings fly. Write to lose yourself in chills and tears and laughter that come purely from your own imagination. Write to feel the pride of accomplishment and see proof of what you've created on your screen or page. Write because the thoughts are trapped in your heart and need to be set free.

Sure, being published may eventually become a priority, but never make it the priority. Writing is for you, not your bank account. Let it set you free.

It doesn't matter what you're writing. If you don't hook your reader right off the start, nobody's going to read what you've written. Well, maybe your mom, or your spouse, or someone you pay … but why torture them? Give them a great opening line.

Sounds easier than it is. But a good opening line—nay, a great opening line is worth all the effort. You might write it once and leave it, thinking it's perfect, or you may rewrite it fifty times. Do whatever it takes. On the other hand, don't get too technical. This is one of those intuitive processes you need to work with. Let yourself sink into the opening, feel it, be One with it, then let it spill out of you onto the page.

If coming up with this first line is giving you such a hard time you can't seem to work past it and get to your second line, then skip it. Sometimes a writer will come up with the perfect first line only after they've finished writing the last line!

The opening sentence is a multi-tasker. It sets the tone for the entire book, connects the reader emotionally to the character or narrator, hints at something yet to be revealed. You want to have the reader lean in, frown at the words, nodding, and say something like, "Wow. This is gonna be good."

Here are a few classics. How can you do this with your own story?

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth.The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger.

Writers' Block is a desire to write but a void of inspiration. A wall you keep butting up against.

Writers' Burnout is a void of everything to do with writing. A dangerous state in which writing can almost become the enemy.

Burnout has to be treated very differently from Block. I'll approach Writers' Block in another post, but in a nutshell , burnout is like you're running on empty. Like lifting your fingers to your keyboard is a chore. You can feel as if your writing's going nowhere … so what's the point? It can manifest physically, in headaches, irritability, poor sleep, exhaustion.

Writing is supposed to be a beautiful thing. To me, when it's good, it's like therapy. So what do we do when this therapy becomes torture?

Take personal time. Just like a "real" job, you need to give yourself a break, and take a break. Maybe schedule a week where you just get away from that keyboard. Enjoy whatever fuels you: people, nature, silence, music, etc.

Here are some other suggestions:

Clean up your workspace. Do you have stacks of notes around? Books? Coffee cups? Find places to put everything so you can put your focus back on writing. You might even want to dust. :)

Read. Read anything you can, whether it's in your genre or not. What do you like about it? What do you dislike? Is there anything in there that rings a little bell for you? An "aha" moment? Write it down, then keep reading.

Read "How to Write" books (I especially like Stephen King's "On Writing" because he's so down to earth). Take notes, but don't return to your writing until you're sure you can use some of the advice.

Write something just for you. Journal. Try your hand at something new, like poetry, non-fiction. Don't plan on showing this to anyone. Just let words work their way back into your heart, where they belong.

Try writing your current Work In Progress, but from a different perspective. Are you focused on one character? Just for today, put yourself in the place of a different character.

Write lists. Get all that junk out of your head and onto paper where it's manageable.

Go for a walk. Hit a beach, museum, movie, walking trail. Take a buddy out for lunch.

On that same vein, sometimes helping others helps yourself. Donate time to your local Food Bank. Write a handwritten letter to an old friend you haven't seen in a while. Send flowers to someone … just because.

You might even consider talking to a professional about all this tension or indifference built up inside you.

Meditate. Breathe. Take care of yourself first. And yes, that means leave the cell phone, the emails, the facebook. Walk away. The world will keep on keeping on while you're gone for however long it takes. People will understand.

Between December 1-23 I’ll post twelve editing suggestions I hope you can use in the coming year when you’re working on your manuscript. I suppose you could print them off and hide them under your tree, but don’t feel like you have to.

Okay, first I'm just gonna complain a bit because I had this post almost done and the internet swallowed it up ... must have been all the electricity I got going in the air because my very first copy of my BOOK arrived today!! Yes, the delivery guy, henceforth known as the delivery ELF, brought it. Can you imagine? He had no idea what it was. Anyway, suffice to say, much celebrating and photo taking has taken place. If you're curious, go see my facebook page.

Okay! On to today's Editing Tip.

DAY #3: SYNTAX

What is Syntax, and what can it do for my writing?There are zillions of words in the English language (that might possibly be an exaggeration, and the cool thing is how you can transform those words from boring old sentences into great ones just by using syntax. What is syntax? Glad you asked.

*****

syn·tax [sin-taks] (c/o Dictionary.com)noun1.Linguisticsa.the study of the rules for the formation of grammatical sentences in a language.b.the study of the patterns of formation of sentences and phrases from words.

*****

So really, it's using words effectively. Here are some examples:

Let's start with two simple sentences. Hmm …

I wrote a book. I hope people will buy it.

Let's connect the two phrases with a conjunction ("and"). In this case, I removed the "I" from the second phrase, meaning the second phrase can't stand independently. When this happens, no comma is necessary.

I wrote a book and hope people will buy it.

Now let's connect them again, but this time I'll pop that "I" back in so the second phrase is just as independent as the first. When you have two independent phrases joined by a conjunction, you have to add a comma before the conjunction.

I wrote a book, and I hope people will buy it.

Now let's use what's called a "dependent marker" so phrase #1 become a modifier for phrase #2.

While I was writing my book, I hoped people would buy it.

Let's switch them around now so phrase #2 starts first. We can play with phrase #1 to make it more interesting.

I hope people buy the book I wrote.

Just to make things even more interesting, we can insert a "nonessential phrase" and surround it by commas BUT you have to put the comma after the conjunction ("and" in this case). The reason the conjunction is before is because the nonessential clause modifies the second phrase, not the first.

I wrote a book and, of course, I'm hoping people will buy it.

Along the nonessential phrase thing, you can also insert one that modifies the first phrase. In that case the conjunction comes after the nonessential phrase.

I wrote a book, which was amazing to me, and I hope people will buy it.

If you want to make that nonessential phrase stick out, like it's something that just popped into your head, use em dashes. The conjunction comes before the dashes in this case.

I wrote a book - which surprised the heck out of me - and I hope people will buy it.

If you use brackets instead, it will de-emphasize it. Don't forget the comma after the close bracket.

I wrote a book (which surprised the heck out of me), and I hope people will buy it.

Semi-colons can be used as well, but sparingly. Too many times writers replace commas or periods with semi-colons. But you use it in a few cases. For example, if we change the second phrase into something a little more interesting, we can add it to the first one.

I wrote a book; I'm hoping when folks head into a bookstore they'll pick up a copy.

Use the semi-colon again, still using a more interesting second phrase, but add an adverb or adverbial phrase after the semi-colon, followed by a comma.

I wrote a book; naturally, I'm hoping when folks head into a bookstore they'll pick up a copy.

When you are writing, or when you've finished writing something, read what you've done out loud. Are your sentences all the same length and rhythm? Do they lack a little depth and variety? Anything gets dull if it's all the same.

Look at syntax. Take a sentence or two and play. Create something beautiful out of something plain.

Between December 1-23 I’ll post twelve editing suggestions I hope you can use in the coming year when you’re working on your manuscript. I suppose you could print them off and hide them under your tree, but don’t feel like you have to.

DAY #2:

Misplaced Modifiers

These can occasionally prompt giggles. Even so, you should avoid them.

First off, what’s a modifier? Words or phrases that modify other words or phrases. “Only” is a typical modifier, and one that is easily misplaced. Other modifiers of which you should be careful are: almost, even, hardly, nearly, and often.

Neither one of these sentences is incorrect, but look at how the placement changes the meaning.

I only speak English.

This means: >I don’t speak anything but English. No French, no Mandarin, no Polish.

I speak only English.

This means:>The only thing I did with English was speak it. I didn’t write it or read it.

Here is a valid example of a misplaced modifier.

Dressed all in blue, Susan paused to study the crowd of women.Who was dressed in blue? Susan or the crowd of women? How about:

Susan paused to study the crowd of women who were all dressed in blue.

Susan, who had dressed in blue that day, paused to study the crowd of women.